I shake my head. "No. I don't know how-or if-he fits in with her plan. Maybe they worked together and maybe they didn't. But I'm making sure none of our enemies can damage what we have. I'm cutting them down one by one."
"I wish you'd told me." She extends a hand, her palm open and facing up. "I would've helped you find some other way."
I take her hand, marveling at its delicate softness. "I don't regret it."
"But this is your private life. It should never have been made public."
"Belle, believe me. I'd endure far worse to protect you."
She brings my hand to her mouth and kisses the knuckles, her eyes closed. "You're more than I deserve, Elliot. Sometimes I feel like you're going to get tired of fighting my battles and just … walk out of my life."
I sit next to her and pull her onto my lap. "Shhh. I'm not fighting anyone's battle but my own. I'm not the kind of man who does things out of noble intentions. I only do things because I want to."
She sighs against my shoulder, and my hold on her tightens. If she were thinking straight, she'd immediately recognize that if she weren't with me, she would've never been Annabelle Underhill's target to begin with. A lot of what she's suffered is because of me-because we met … and I wanted her … and married her … and now because I want to keep her.
As she stays pliant in my arms, I thank every deity I know that she's too nice and probably too tired at the moment to realize just how bad I am for her. She thinks she has some ugly baggage, but none of that's about who she is, just the crappy circumstances she's been in.
But my baggage? I shudder. All my shit is stuff I did because I was too dumb to know any better. Fucking Annabelle Underhill right after she exchanged wedding vows with my dad … releasing a sex tape … and all the other stupid crap … Every time, it was just because I got a wild hair up my ass and said fuck it.
If Belle could think straight even for a second, she'd bail. Vanish faster than a hummingbird.
Chapter Twenty-Four
Annabelle
Nonny's eyes widen when one of the associates at the spa brings out a tray of chocolate-covered strawberries and places it in front of us. "Are they for us?" she whispers, as masseuses knead our feet.
I nod.
Before I can say more, she snatches one off the silver tray and gobbles it up. "Oh my god," she moans, the words muffled by chocolate, "this is so good!"
"Swallow before you talk." My smile ruins the rebuke. It's difficult to be upset when she's so happy.
I realize we've never had any girl time together. She was too young, then our parents died … and I never had any extra money to spoil her with. Perhaps the need to scrimp became too ingrained, because I never even thought about doing something like this with her until Elliot surprised me this morning.
"All prepaid. Just go have fun," he told me as he kissed me sweetly after a session of very thorough lovemaking.
"Oh my god, you've got to try one, Anna." Nonny hands me a piece.
We enjoy the blissful chocolate. After a moment, Nonny says, "You okay?"
I give her a frown. "Of course I'm okay."
"It's just … I saw that thing about Elliot and his ex."
I sigh. She'd have to be living in a cave not to have seen it. Even if Elliot were just an average Joe, Annabelle Underhill's husband is a big deal in the business world.
"Everyone has an ex they'd rather forget about," I say neutrally.
"Who's yours? Dennis, right?"
I force a smile. "Something like that. Now hush and enjoy your foot massage."
Nonny nods, pulls out her phone and starts typing.
My mobile buzzes a moment later. I give her a sideways look, but she's got her eyes closed.
Sure enough, there's a new text on my phone. Do you think Elliot cared about the other Annabelle?
I guess there's no avoiding it. Probably. No reason to date her otherwise. We all think we care about our significant others until they turn out to be all wrong for us. I hit send.
How do you know they're wrong for you?
I turn to her. "Are you dating someone?"
"Well … sort of." She shrugs, her cheeks flushed. "That guy from algebra."
"Who's also in your history class, right?"
She nods. "He's cute and super nice. But don't tell Elliot, because he'll get all overprotective. I want to wait until, like, our third month before saying anything to him."
"Okay. I can do that."
"So … ?"
Right. Her question. "When the initial attraction cools a bit and you can actually hear yourself think again, you'll know."
"What if it never cools?"
I purse my lips. "Then maybe it's true love."